Joseph J. Bellinger
Principal
Washington Area: Phone 301.575.0315 l Fax 301.575.0335
Baltimore Area: Phone 443.738.1515 l Fax 443.738.1535
jbellinger@offitkurman.com
Practice Areas
Bankruptcy, Restructuring & Creditors’ Rights
Commercial Litigation
Banking and Finance
Practice Focus
Joseph Bellinger is Chair of the firm's Bankruptcy, Restructuring & Creditors’ Rights Practice. His diverse practice encompasses a broad range of litigation in bankruptcy cases and insolvency matters, and his clients include asset-based lenders, factors, equity funds, financial institutions holding secured and unsecured claims, indenture trustees, equipment lessors, landlords, manufacturers, taxing authorities, Chapter 7 and 11 trustees, state court receivers, turnaround professionals, and purchasers of distressed loans or assets. He has also served on the panel of Chapter 7 Bankruptcy Trustees for the District of Maryland since 1997. In addition to creditor representation, he has represented borrowers and guarantors in bankruptcy proceedings, restructurings and litigation matters.
Mr. Bellinger has extensive experience in Chapter 11 bankruptcy cases, state court receiverships and other insolvency proceedings. His litigation experience includes fraudulent conveyance claims, preference actions, contested plan confirmations and all forms of contested matters in bankruptcy cases. Mr. Bellinger’s litigation practice also includes complex commercial litigation in state and federal courts.
Education
J.D. (magna cum laude), University of Baltimore, 1990
B.S., Western Michigan University, 1980
Bar and Court Admissions
Maryland
United States District Court, District of Maryland
United States Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit
Points of Distinction
Mr. Bellinger has practiced as a bankruptcy lawyer in the Baltimore area for his entire career. He has also appeared in federal bankruptcy courts in several other states.
Mr. Bellinger has received the highest professional (AV) rating from his peers, as reported by Martindale-Hubbell.
Prior to becoming an attorney, Mr. Bellinger was a high school teacher at a public school in Maryland, where he taught United States history and English, and coached football and track and field.
Activities
For more than 10 years, Mr. Bellinger has served on the board of directors for the Turnaround Management Association, Chesapeake Chapter and he is a former president of the Chapter.
He is a member of the American Bankruptcy Institute, the Maryland Bankruptcy Bar Association and the National Association of Bankruptcy Trustees.
Publications/Speeches
Mr. Bellinger is a frequent lecturer on the Bankruptcy Code and Procedures, and has published several articles in the American Bankruptcy Institute Journal, the Secured Lender, and other national publications.
